A journey to Truth…

Bismillah, I’ll start with the name of Allah, the most beneficent the most merciful. To Him do we all have to return, and to Him does the hearts turn when there is no other way. There actually is no other way.

Surah Yunus Ayah: 22,23.

He it is Who enables you to travel through land and sea, till when you are in the ships and they sail with them with a favourable wind, and they are glad therein, then comes a stormy wind and the waves come to them from all sides, and they think that they are encircled therein, they invoke Allah, making their Faith pure for Him Alone, saying: “If You (Allah) deliver us from this, we shall truly be of the grateful.”

But when He delivered them, behold! They rebel (disobey Allah) in the earth wrongfully. O mankind! Your rebellion (disobedience to Allah) is only against your ownselves, – a brief enjoyment of this worldly life, then (in the end) unto Us is your return, and We shall inform you that which you used to do.

I attended an event about the two journeys, one of them is about repentance and other one is about finding oneself and one’s identity. The two spectacularly great scholar’s journeys come up my way today that I would like to share with all those who are a part of this beautiful religion called “Islam”. Both the scholars walk on the path towards the truth but in different situations and that is the beautification of our religion; it really is different for everyone who seeks to find it. This is the article about the journeys they took and how did they find what most of us can’t, and how are they continuing with this magnificent journey and if Allah wills they always will.

A journey of repentance

A child born in London. A child brought up in London, a Muslim child. I hate being brought up in London, he says. I hated it being a part of surrounding that teaches me nothing of who I actually am. He was a gangster, gangster of his college. He got bullied when he was small and was very shy to fight the people around him. He was even shy to punch his dad back when he was playing with him of course. His father told him smack the one who hurts you. Beat him up. He started learning how to fight, even joined the boxing thing. Now, he’s all violent. Even when someone is looking at him, he stares back and attack him by saying wha’ bro? You got a problem? Come fight with me , yeah. Smacked him out of no rational reason. This soon gets into him and he started to be called among the gangsters of his school. He got into fight with everyone. Everyone calls him a “Troop” which is actually a title for a really cool person. He got so many friends by that time that he can actually call himself safe in London. Friends mean those who can come up with knives and guns on his one call. He RAP . He became pretty cool with today’s standards . Also he told the first time he went to a pub was when he was nine years old and his father took him there. I was awed. Anyway he was disgusted as any kid should be. As he grew up he saw this beautiful girl and went after her. She was so beautiful that his friends could betray him for her. The positive thing about him was he never committed adultery. Though he was so close to it, but he never did. At the same time, he forbids his girl to go into the pub because no matter how a bad a Muslim he was, he still wanted her to be a little bit shameful. They argued on that. As a result, she said she needed a break (break as in the break that she’ll start seeing someone else). He was broken. He completely broke down. He has nowhere to go, nothing but do. He cried on pillow most of the nights. He missed her. He went to mosque some of the days of week, especially for Jumma’ prayer.

One day he was going and the whole school boys that is Indians, white boys, black boys piled up against him and they said where is that troop? We want to see him(he hid his face because it was a style so most people haven’t seen his face), he said no brother I am going to jumma prayer today please don’t tell them who I am. I promise I’ll deal with them laters. They do come afterwards and there were so many of them and me one. I asked Allah for help. Please help me this time Allah, I promise I will leave all the sins that I do. I promise I will never return to this dunya and it’s fitna. They asked for him and he came forward. He said , I am the troop. He slammed the hands on his chest and asked who’s gonna mess with me? Come on I’m gonna fight you all. As he was saying they all became frightened and nobody came to him. Subhan Allah. Allah is truly the greatest and He listens whenever and whoever speaks to Him in earnest. Subhan Allah. That’s how Great my and your Lord is.

Back to the story, he started praying. He prayed five times a day now. He was one day depressed because he was remembering that girl and another brother who was Bengali came to him, asking what’s wrong? He told him about the girl and the brother said the beautiful words he ever heard, those which turned his heart and he started living for Allah. He started to cry as soon as he heard the words, the words were:

“Brother you put your happiness in that girl, when she leaves you. You become unhappy. Anxiety throws itself upon you. You put your happiness in something that is temporary. When this person, or thing will vanish your happiness will vanish along with it. Why don’t you put your happiness in Allah Almighty? He’s immortal. He will always be there , You’ll never be depressed, Wallahi. Your happiness will last forever.”

Those aren’t the exact words but interpretation was somehow the same. Coming back, this was so true we do put our happiness in the things such as cars, houses and our families and life partners. All of this has to leave us one day and they do leave us one day. We are all alone then except the one who has Allah.

That’s how brother journey towards Islam started. He never reverted back to those he were once a part of instead Alhamdulilah he’s now doing dawah with the street kids who are just like he was. He is just 22 years old with so much wisdom Masha Allah. May Allah grant him with all the courage he requires and May he always stays in Islam. Ameen.

Yousuf Chambers(A journey To find oneself)

According to yousuf chambers, “Eighty percent of this world’s people donot question themselves about what is the purpose of their lives? They don’t even bother knowing”.

Yousuf chambers is a born Christian. A very naughty kid he says he was, who was always piled up with the questions. His friends used to tease him on that. He never underestimated himself , ever. As his rationalism and certainity leads him to a extent that he will find a perfect answer to his Queries , and it soon took him to the path of truth.

He listened to music very very much. He found serenity in music. He puts the earphones on and listened to music for hours and thinking wow man, this is amazing. Life is so beautiful. I am Micheal Jackson and I can do the moon walk , O yeah! He became so full of himself. As he turns off the music or gets out of it the reality dawned on him, it hits him hard. This is the same vain world, with nowhere to go. What is the purpose of this life? He often asked himself and many people around him? He kept asking and looking for the universal religion?

Yousuf Chambers searched for the true purpose of his life for 11 years. He looked everywhere, never once had he come across with a single meaningful answer. Starting with the church he went to church and asked the man about his questions who came on the door but he returned him saying, “Come on Monday”. He didn’t knew how will he wait for two more days so he went back and back to music. He came after two days with the questions in head, this time though he wasn’t refused and allowed in. So, he asked what is the purpose of my life? I have been searching on it but I can’t find it? Reply was, “Have you studied the degree of theology? O.o He was like yes, I searched and studied a lot but you are a man of God tell me , man to man, what is the purpose of my life? To which he could not answer. He then asked do you beleive in moses? He got the answer in negative. He pondered over it and reconciled within himself why not? There were prophets before jesus so then why not the belief? Yousuf chambers came back to loud thumping music, so he went on with his search as well.

He now goes to budhists and just by reading the first page of the literature he got vexed. He couldn’t get it even after reading it for 15 times. It didn’t provoke him instead made him more confused. He left it saying it cannot be a universal religion.

Also he had this one girlfriend, who was a msulim.

Eventually he came towards Islam. He ought to know about this religion as well as he knew about all others, so he went to mosques. Doing as the Muslims did. No matter what, he didn’t get it. SO, he looked for signs in moon, stars, sun. He looked everywhere. He came to this mosque and asked for the questions he has been asking everyone. The preacher gave him books to read. Some piles of books, which he kept on reading for two weeks. He kept on reading and reading and reading until he knew this is it! That is the one true religion ! Islam is the religion for him and all mankind. He called and thanked his girlfirend gracioulsy. Then he took the “ghusal” about which he has all read in the ahadith. He took ghusal all night, as he was so happy that he found himself. Next day he went to take his shahadah . It was ramadan. He was asked why is he coming to mosque? He said,”he want to take his shahada”. Masha Allah. The man asked him if he has taken ghusal. He goes ALL NIGHT. 😀 SO, that’s how he went to take his shahada , Masha Allah. He took his shahada in front of many Muslims during Ramadhan. Subhan Allah. Almost 300 people greeted him and hugged him. Although it took long but he stick to the ultimate true sources of Islam(Quran, Authenticate ahadith) and found his purpose in life.

He sacrificed his living miserable life and got a peaceful life as a reward. He annulled all the connotations and stick to the truth. May Allah grant him with more and more courage and self righteousness. Ameen.

Bottom line:

Dawah is not a responsibility of some people and it is a duty of the whole Muslim Umaah. The positive point of giving dawah is that it penetrates through ypur heart first while you are telling it to anyone else. & The best part is that you learn at the very best level.

Dawah is not just getting out of house leaving everything but anything or everything that can come up to your mind with which you can help anyone. Even helping a practising Muslim is dawah. Helping in a sense giving one proper guidance in one or two aspects/matters that he is astryed in. They say, “charity begins at home”. I say, “Dawah begins from home”.

Great persons like the above mentioned two are inspiration for many of us. Try to learn from them. See how beautiful our religion is and how fortunate are we to be a part of this religion. Fortunate yet so unfortunate.

Do learn from the most basic sources and spread awareness. Let down the innovations. Let down the shaitaan in you. Fly high with bigger motivations for Allah.

Allah knows best. Allah is looking at the efforts that you are making each day. He asks every night,

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Our Lord (glorified and exalted be He) descends each night to the earth’s sky when there remains the final third of the night, and He says: ‘Who is saying a prayer to Me that I may answer it? Who is asking something of Me that I may give it him? Who is asking forgiveness of Me that I may forgive him?'” [Bukhari (also by Muslim, Malik, at-Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud).]

In a version by Muslim the Hadith ends with the words: “And thus He continues till [the light of] dawn shines.”

May Allah subhana wa Taa’la help us all. & May he grant every Muslim who lives for Allah a place in Jannat ul firdous. Ameen. 🙂

Stay blessed and rational.

I hope we all find our journeys with repentence and sincerity, not out of vanity and division among our own brother and sisters.